FACTS

Location: Akranes, Iceland

Year: 2018

Status: Built

Area: 100m2

Program: Bathing facilities

Client: Akranes municipality, Guðlaug Gunnlaugsdóttir and Jón Gunnlaugsson Memorial Foundation

 

ABOUT

Guðlaug baths are located on Langisandur, Akranes, on Iceland's west coast. It is nested in a rocky breakwater barrier that runs along the beach, and shelters sports grounds from the North Atlantic Ocean. The beach is a popular common space for the people of Akranes who both simply pass by to enjoy the vista as well as using the beach for a variety of activities. The baths are open to the public and play a supporting role, for example as a gathering point for ocean swimmers in dire need of warming up. The formal expression of the baths is inspired by the naturally occurring pools of seawater that form around rocks sitting on the beach as the tide flows in and out. It is composed of three platforms, the top as a viewing deck/roof, the middle as the Guðlaug bath itself that flows into the bottom, a shallow pool at beach level. North of the baths is a soccer stadium with an exposed concrete structure facing the ocean. The “underbelly” of the stadium is re-purposed as changing rooms, café, and storage, serving the beach, the pool and the soccer field, further enhancing the quality of life on Langisandur.

 

CREDITS

Design team: 

Guðjón Kjartansson, Hrólfur Karl Cela, Jón Guðmundsson, Sigríður Sigþórsdóttir